Knox City Council members want more information before deciding whether to relax regulations on where tattoo parlors can be located. The current city ordinance, which was adopted in 2009, requires tattoo parlor operators to receive a permit from the city. It further states, “The location shall be at least 500 feet from any property used for school purposes, licensed day care center, church, public park, or a place licensed for the sale of alcoholic beverages.” Continue reading →

Knox has earned the dubious distinction of being the poorest town in Indiana. The financial news website “24/7 Wall St.” compared the median household income of communities to the average in their state. According to their figures, Knox has a median income of $30,300, compared to $48,248 statewide. Continue reading →

The Knox City Council learned this week of ongoing vandalism at Wythogan Park.

Park Superintendent George Byer has informed authorities that there is some form of vandalism at the park on a constant basis. Recently a picnic table was thrown into the river, a toilet was blown up by a firecracker, two fountains were destroyed and the cannon in the park has also suffered damage from vandals.

Two members of the Knox City Council agreed to be on a committee to discuss the proposed acquisition of the Gateway property.

Discussions were held previously to enter into an agreement to transfer title of land and improvements of the Gateway property to the city of Knox. The property includes the depot, the watchman’s tower, the Nickel Plate signal tower and tracks. The depot is home to the Starke County Visitor’s Center and Starke County Chamber of Commerce. A house on West Water Street would also be part of the agreement.

The Knox City Council members discussed a revised fee ordinance Tuesday night.

Under Section 1, Article VI, Sec. 4-251. Location improvement permit fees, a commercial/industrial permit for new construction, additions and remodeling will be left at $5,000. In a previous discussion, the members considered an increase to $7,500, but later determined the $5,000 fee was sufficient.

The Knox City Council this week discussed building permit fees after a resident left paperwork with Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston explaining he felt he was overcharged when he bought a permit to add an addition to a pole barn. The resident explained he was issued a building permit for a 24-foot-by-40-foot addition to an existing pole barn and was charged $192, though he thought the accessory building permit should have only been $75.

An ongoing dispute in the city administration for Knox has left one office empty, as former Planning Commissioner Greg Matt was not re-elected to his position. Worse, the Planning Commission and Mayor Rick Chambers are at odds as to who elects the planning commissioner – Chambers said he believes the planning commissioner is a department head appointed by him, but the Planning Commission believes he is an employee appointed by the commission.

A construction project on U.S. 35 north of Knox has several people scratching their head, as no permits have been filed in Starke County nor the city of Knox.

However, despite the lack of filed permits, City Building Administrator Greg Matt said it appears that NIPSCO is building a substation. He explained a permit is required for them to build a substation, and on top of that, plans for the structure must be submitted as well.

A demolition date has not yet been set for the former home of the Knox theater and the offices of the Starke County Economic Development Foundation.

City Planning Administrator Greg Matt said the city of Knox is in the midst of applying for a grant to take down the building at the corner of Main and Lake streets. The grant’s matching funds will be paid by the Starke County Economic Development Foundation. If the grant is obtained, a date will be set for the demolition of the building in downtown Knox.

An archiving company has been inside the building to take out the antique theater chairs, the limestone from the outside of the building, and the tin ceilings.

If you have damage at your residence from Tuesday morning’s storms, be careful who you hire to make repairs on your property.

Knox City Building Administrator Greg Matt asks you to exercise caution and make sure the contractor has registered with the City of Knox before you agree to any contract. Matt explains that when the registration is complete, the contractor will receive proof that he is registered with the city.

“They get a card to carry in their wallet that shows that they’re registered with the City of Knox,” said Matt. “Their vehicles also get hang-tags that have a registration number and says ‘City of Knox’. If someone comes to your door, you have every right to ask to see this identification.”

This is the one of locations discussed at last night's meeting. This is the old Everett's Drug Store/movie theatre building

Approximately three dozen people attended the first meeting called last night to gain ideas for improving downtown Knox.

The meeting was chaired by Mayor Rick Chambers and Gene Blastic from the Starke County Economic Development Foundation.

Many of the comments had to do with buildings that have fallen into disrepair. Knox City Councilman, Greg Matt, said it’s obvious the City Council is going to have to create ordinances with more stringent codes to force the building owners into action.

A discussion of Knox’s “two-mile jurisdiction” was held last week at the Knox City Council meeting. City Attorney David Matsey pointed out that the planning jurisdiction and zoning map do not correspond. On the zoning map that is registered in the county recorder’s office, some locations, particularly near the corners, are farther than two miles, and at least one to the west takes in less than a mile.

“We’ll have a street dance for everyone of all ages,” said Knox Neighborhood Watch Committee Spokesman, Greg Matt, of the festivities. “The Boy Scouts will be downtown helping us out and there were will be police cars, the new Hummer and the fire trucks will be there. We’re going to have the flashlight parade starting dusk and this year we’re going to take the parade, lead by new Hummer, down Main Street.”

The Police Department will be doing fingerprinting for the kids and there will be informational items for you concerning Neighborhood Watch.

The purpose of the National Night Out event is for you to get out and meet officers on the police force, the emergency responders and others in your neighborhood.

The National Night Out event is on Tuesday, August 2nd, but the City of Knox has postponed its observation until Monday, August 8th at 7:00 p.m. Greg Matt from the Knox Neighborhood Watch organization said he didn’t want to interfere with Andy Howes Memorial Service which is scheduled for the same evening.

The Knox Neighborhood Watch meeting is tonight at 6:30 p.m. in the Knox City Court Room in Knox City Hall. Greg Matt, from the Neighborhood Watch Committee, says it will be an important meeting for residents to attend.

“We’re going to have a program on gangs,” said Matt. “If you’ve noticed in the past few months around Knox, we’ve had some gang taggings on buildings downtown, in the alleys and in other neighborhoods. There are other gang signs that have been going up like sneakers over power lines. Thom Morin will be coming in and discussing gangs and the telltale signs of whether your children are getting involved. It’s something that every citizen in the City of Knox should be aware of and hopefully concerned with.”

The fate of Marsh Manor on Main Street in Knox will be decided on May 25th. According to Planning Commissioner Greg Matt, the building has been boarded up after the last of the renters were evicted. According to some, the building had been home to several “squatters” too before it was finally emptied.

Once a home to Dr. Kelly, a prominent dentist in the community, the home had been turned into an apartment building. It had fallen on hard times during the past few years, with a fire the final blow to its viability as a rooming house.

Knox City Democrats went to the polls yesterday and re-elected Mayor Rick Chambers, Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston, and City Councilman Ron Parker in the contested races.

Chambers defeated challenger Mark Smith 401-288 in the mayoral race, and at party headquarters, he thanked his supporters.

“It’s been an exciting four years and I’m just humbled by the public coming out and voting and supporting me,” said Chambers. “We’re here to support the public. I’ve got to thank my family. My Mother-in-Law, my kids, everybody else that helped me, and the City workers who have made me look good for the past four years. We’ve got to thank them.”

There are two other candidates running for a seat on the Knox City Council and they are unopposed in the Knox Primary Election.

Greg Matt has served for eight-and-a-half years on the Council and he says that his focus is the economy and jobs.

“In the next four years, I hope we can continue our partnership with the Starke County Economic Development Foundation and bring in more industry and more jobs,” said Matt. “Charlie’s been a great asset to us and we’ve been quite successful. A lot of that is because he had a great opportunity to bring in the rail into our Industrial Park. I’m very pro industry because that gives us a lot of employment and that’s what we would all like to see.”